I opened this thread because i really want to know what you other guys think about the new visual changes of WM 6.5. I personally think they are ugly and there is very little innovation in it. so basically most of things are increased in size ...When i saw for the frst time the mods i thought they were done by some registry change. if you compare it what HTC has done graphically is very very little i think. MS wants to make wm finger friendly by increasing the size of the graphic objects and dont care even if they look well or are aligned.
opinios are welcome
Agh who cares about the standard 6.5 home screen, everone has TouchFlo anyway...which is waaay better
i think 6.5 home is sexy, especially with the few themes made by some devs here on xda, i cant wait til seus give us 6.5(thats if)
i like the titanium home screen much more than TouchFlo
well the home wasnt my point actually i mean those new windows and those giant notifications ... sooo ugly ...
informatico said:
well the home wasnt my point actually i mean those new windows and those giant notifications ... sooo ugly ...
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I agree with you, I thought that was a bug with my rom or it wasn't 'cooked' properly. I think MS have a long way to go to match the IPhone and various other touch phone interfaces.
hatski said:
match the IPhone and various other touch phone interfaces.
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Why? .
I think you guys are expecting WM7 features to be in WM6.5. That's just not the case. What I've seen (in the betas) isn't bad, but, definitely does not compete with next-gen smartphone OS'es (yet). I wouldn't judge WM6.5 until it is released.
I think the eye-candy element is only part of making a GUI and OS great. What else helps is refinement, speed and stability.
htc have said they are developing the Sense UI for eclair, but in my opinion, there is nothing seriuosly wrong with the standard Android UI as it is,
why dont they release the Sense UI afterwards as as optional upgrade?
i think they are wasting their time, i buy HTC phones for the good hardware design and components, not for the UI, even on WM i used to turn off their enhancements to the WM UI.
does anyone else feel they are wasting their time?
edit: sorry about the slightly vague poll options
totally not on your side. sense ui is great, i like it much better than stock android. also not on your side concerning htc's improvments in general, sorry...
Love the Sense UI.
Gives it a polished feel. Onlt concern I have is over long term support for it as the device becomes last year's model. But by then, standard Android should be much more polished as well...
Zuber
Love the sense UI. Will not go back to Android UI.
Had a G1 running "vanilla" Android prior to my Hero, and I wouldn't want to go back to the standard interface. Sense UI all the way for me!
Regards,
Dave
I dont see a lot of people agreeing with you. SenseUI is fantastic. Can't wait to see what they do with Android 2.0
Sense is perhaps redundant in some ways, but also very much valuable in many places. The 7 home screens are way more spacious than the default 3. The unified contacts view allows me to get all I need to know about a contact from one place. The skinned apps are more finger-friendly and provide a more consistent user experience.
Overall, I think Sense adds great value to the Android platform, and sets the Hero apart from other Android phones. That's not to say vanilla Android is bad, but it's what it is: vanilla.
I think of Android as more of a bare minimum enabler as opposed to a full mobile OS. Yes indeed, it can be run as a full mobile OS, but the experience is minimal. However, it lays the framework for vendors to differentiate their products from the competition, while maintaining application cross-compatibility.
another problem i see in future is the android os fracturing in the same way linux has, ironically.
yes there is a vanilla feel to the standard android theme, but it runs fast and stable, unlike the sense ui which has already crashed at least once (yes, latest updates have been applied), this sort of thing was common with the WM skins that HTC developed.
for me, the main factor is stability not looks, as im not going to be spending my day looking at the screen. if its not stable enough to not go a day without crashing, then theres problems. moving to htc android from htc wm, i was hoping there would be more stability but not yet.
I kinda like good old vanilla, but sense does look really nice. Things I really like about sense is: contacts, browser, camera, album and calendar. These features are hard to let go of. The special widgets are not a real big deal.
warsng said:
another problem i see in future is the android os fracturing in the same way linux has, ironically.
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This is always going to be an issue given that Android uses a non-copyleft open source licence. It is simultaneously both a good and bad thing!
yes there is a vanilla feel to the standard android theme, but it runs fast and stable, unlike the sense ui which has already crashed at least once (yes, latest updates have been applied), this sort of thing was common with the WM skins that HTC developed.
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Not discounting your experience at all, but I came from a G1 running vanilla Android, and I've found that Hero/Sense is at least as stable as that.
for me, the main factor is stability not looks, as im not going to be spending my day looking at the screen. if its not stable enough to not go a day without crashing, then theres problems. moving to htc android from htc wm, i was hoping there would be more stability but not yet.
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If you have problems with your Hero crashing daily, you definitely have problems. I seldom feel the need to reboot my Hero. Then again, whilst I use a Modaco ROM, I don't use Apps2SD, Swapper, or regularly kill tasks, and many of the problems I see on this site are likely related to those.
Regards,
Dave
Sense UI only means every nice thing Google does for Android has to go through HTC, which takes time. Also after 2.0 Android we will not get anything new to Hero from HTC, I can guarantee that. You will have to buy "Hero II".
Sense is a way for HTC to stamp their own branding on the phone. Its a differentiator amongst the coming wave of Android devices.
People have done this for years with WiMo and Symbian.
Its called marketing
I think HTC have done an amazing job with their GUI, as said above, it adds polish to an excellent OS.
Nothing worse IMHO than having a new handset that may look different hardware wise but just like everything else when you look at the screen. Which you do whenever you use it
i have never understood why people are so concerned about the looks more than the functionality/stability. but then i've never understood much about human behaviour
warsng said:
i have never understood why people are so concerned about the looks more than the functionality/stability. but then i've never understood much about human behaviour
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Well, in my opinion, it's more functional and at least as stable. So, I don't see your problem!
Regards,
Dave
warsng said:
htc have said they are developing the Sense UI for eclair, but in my opinion, there is nothing seriuosly wrong with the standard Android UI as it is,
why dont they release the Sense UI afterwards as as optional upgrade?
i think they are wasting their time, i buy HTC phones for the good hardware design and components, not for the UI, even on WM i used to turn off their enhancements to the WM UI.
does anyone else feel they are wasting their time?
edit: sorry about the slightly vague poll options
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definetly: NO. Sense UI is the best thing which happened to Android.
Pure Android just doesn't look professional UI wise. HTC was the first company who provided a great skin to android AND made it more functional also (HTC SENSE Contacts app is nearly perfect).
Yes pure Android might be faster, and HTc Touch FLO on Windows Mobile was SLOW. BUT HTC Sense on Android is really fast enough for me. especially after the update. And i can't live without all the great Sense Apps and widgets.
Sorry for my self promotion, but i wrote exactly about this issue on my blog. I'm a longterm Windows Mobile user switching to android, thanks to HTC and HTC Sense. I think HTC Sense brought Android to the next level Usability and UI wise:
http://smartphoneblogging.com/2009/09/a-longterm-windows-mobile-user-switching-to-android-part-4-htc-sense-review/
jpalo said:
Sense UI only means every nice thing Google does for Android has to go through HTC, which takes time. Also after 2.0 Android we will not get anything new to Hero from HTC, I can guarantee that. You will have to buy "Hero II".
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that maybe true. in this case you can always root your phone and get the further updates via xda devs...
still "not getting updates" for 3 years is not enough to let HTC Sense go. It provides just so much better usability. The folks at google can't provide such an experience up to now, and they never will because the whole concept of Android is: take the OS framework, and customize it to your liking, thats when companies like HTC come into play.
warsng said:
i have never understood why people are so concerned about the looks more than the functionality/stability. but then i've never understood much about human behaviour
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it's not about looks, it's about USABILITY and FUNCTIONALITY, not only one of them. And overall HTC Sense has both.
HTC adds even more to the mix like multitouch and the whole facebook, twitter, flickr integration. Yeah Android 2.0 provides this too now, but HTC will keep adding stuff which is missing in vanilla android.
i accept the point that this is about marketing, but its not like i would forget that this is a HTC phone if the interface did not remind me 24 hrs a day.
i also resent the fact that the default is to have the Sense UI on. it would be ok if there was a more of a choice. maybe i havent yet learnt how to turn it off properly, im a bit of a android noob , i confess
warsng said:
i also resent the fact that the default is to have the Sense UI on. it would be ok if there was a more of a choice. maybe i havent yet learnt how to turn it off properly, im a bit of a android noob , i confess
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Each to their own of course, but to resent Sense being the default UI is probably a bit harsh when Sense is one of the key features that Hero is marketed with!
If you really want to use the default home screen, the easiest method would be to download "Home Switcher" from the Market (yes, I know it can be done manually, but this is easier!).
Regards,
Dave
warsng said:
i accept the point that this is about marketing, but its not like i would forget that this is a HTC phone if the interface did not remind me 24 hrs a day.
i also resent the fact that the default is to have the Sense UI on. it would be ok if there was a more of a choice. maybe i havent yet learnt how to turn it off properly, im a bit of a android noob , i confess
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You can switch to default Android home quite easily. Go to settings, mnage apps, findd touchFLO, reset it's default category. And press home button - you will be able to choose betwen 2 homes and set a default one again.
Hopefuly you will see how much worse the original home is - even sliding through homescreeens feels unpolished and not smooth. I use 1.6 on the Magic too and trust me, HTC is a savior for Android. Would not use Android at all without SenseUI.
Also, there is a myth that SenseUI stuff sit on top on original Android, like TouchFLO sits on top of WinMo. But that is not true. Since Android is open source, HTC just modify and manipulate it. HTC home is separate though, but it is based on Androids home and runs in the same level.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATUY6lO_bRE
i want that lock screen. and i want that theme. and i never liked the 6.5.x/6.6 builds but that looks great and i want it too.
htcs really gone off the deep end. wvga sense for android, half-vga windows mobile device, and a phone that doesnt run droid or winmo.
Your right it does look rather cool, hopefully someone will port this to the Leo.
Porthing the "Sense"
do you think that the HTC Sense on the HD Mini will be able to port over to more low end devices? I have my Touch Pro 2 now and I still miss my old LG Incite so as a last wish of respect for it is it possible to transfer HVGA to WQVGA?
The Jack of Clubs said:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATUY6lO_bRE
i want that lock screen. and i want that theme. and i never liked the 6.5.x/6.6 builds but that looks great and i want it too.
htcs really gone off the deep end. wvga sense for android, half-vga windows mobile device, and a phone that doesnt run droid or winmo.
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I agree with you 100%, that lockscreen would look great on my Vogue.
we need to get that build and matching theme too.
i just noticed they moved this thread. i wanted it on my rhodium!
The theme has been posted on XDA meanwhile......http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=5801967#post5801967
Pardon my ignorance, but what is the dififference between sense and non sense builds? I'm not asking which is better. I've read more than enough opinions on that. I'm just wondering what the main differences are. I know that sense has some widgets that I like, like friendstream and the clock, but what else is there to this sense?
izzy spun said:
Pardon my ignorance, but what is the dififference between sense and non sense builds? I'm not asking which is better. I've read more than enough opinions on that. I'm just wondering what the main differences are. I know that sense has some widgets that I like, like friendstream and the clock, but what else is there to this sense?
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Quoting someone smarter than me: Sense builds are based on HTC Sense, they're a lot more compatible with our little babies and have some good eyecandy, but are kinda large and slugish for the taste of some ppl, in the other hand, CM or any other non sense builds are based on open source projects, they are less stable (but deff not worthless to give them a try) they are lighter and faster, specially Cyanogen Mod builds. My two cents: give them both (sense no sense) a try and stick it with the one u like more! But remember not only sense makes a diff, kernels, radios, and even installation alternatives (RAM, SD, NAND) make a huge diff...
I would search around youtube and look at the htc desire or evo videos as well as stock android. That will give you a good idea of the differences at least visually of how they are different.
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App
I do not like the color bars Android "smooth "
The colors of the bars can be customized like the sense? And if yes, how?
Many thanks in advance.
(PS: now use on my HD2 the build SuperRAM_FroYo_V1.5 )
rainbow2112 said:
I do not like the color bars Android "smooth "
The colors of the bars can be customized like the sense? And if yes, how?
Android Builds can be themed.
All of them.
You have to replace images in system-res.apk... (plenty of instructions around)
Sense however, already has a custom HTC theme (or more themes - if you think of newSense phones) and has some system apps replaced with HTC versions.
(Different Launcher + Scrollable Widgets, Different Facebook,Twitter,Contacts,Phone, camera etc... apps)...
It's pretty much like stock winmo 6.5 versus the sense version.
Sense looks pretty and has some additional useful features.
(like green glowing taskbar when in a call)
There are also other Android versions, for example MIUI, motorolas motoUI and samsungs TouchWiz... (and dell and lg and and and...)
I love Cyanogenmod, I love MIUI and I love Sense... I Might like TouchWiz aswell - but there are no ports avaliable for our phones
Cheers
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domenukk said:
I Might like TouchWiz aswell - but there are no ports avaliable for our phones
Cheers
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You dont need a port, TouchWiz is simply a launcher and you can have it by installing a apk, there is a link on forum ir you search
TheATHEiST said:
You dont need a port, TouchWiz is simply a launcher and you can have it by installing a apk, there is a link on forum ir you search
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Have you ever tried any samsung-android phone?
It's not just the launcher.
Its a different dialer etc.
also in the taskbar you have a power widget like in cyanogenmod...
and if you slide your finger over the notification bar, you can set your screen brightnes...
domenukk said:
Have you ever tried any samsung-android phone?
It's not just the launcher.
Its a different dialer etc.
also in the taskbar you have a power widget like in cyanogenmod...
and if you slide your finger over the notification bar, you can set your screen brightnes...
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Click to collapse
what u mean is the framework of android, and yes it can be themed BUT only on Deodexed builds...
I've switched from HTC Diamond2 (windows mobile 6.5x) to S/E Arc, and I miss the HTC interface.
Is it possible to load the android equivalent to this hardware?
Get beautiful widget + Sense theme for ADW launcher
vegetaleb said:
Get beautiful widget + Sense theme for ADW launcher
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thanks
Thanks vegetaleb for the reply! I see that it is possible to mimic the home screen layout really well. However, what Im looking for was the part of Sense that handled calendar related stuff like booking a meeting. In detail, I liked how the clock was changed like it was on a spinning wheel - which made it possible to change the time really fast. Maybe there is something similar in the Android world?
I am missing some Sense apps as well, like the slide down Alarm that you will never find in other apps, if it was a Nexus One with 90% same components as HTC own phones you can ''port'' Sense into it by a custom rom, but when the hardwares are totally different here it's very difficult to do it.
SGS devs tried to port Desire rom but they never could, and they tried hard...
I hope you didn't see the new Sense 3.0, you will return to HTC once Sensation is out
vegetaleb said:
I am missing some Sense apps as well, like the slide down Alarm that you will never find in other apps, if it was a Nexus One with 90% same components as HTC own phones you can ''port'' Sense into it by a custom rom, but when the hardwares are totally different here it's very difficult to do it.
SGS devs tried to port Desire rom but they never could, and they tried hard...
I hope you didn't see the new Sense 3.0, you will return to HTC once Sensation is out
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The phones hardware is identical to (apart from smaller storage,screen etc) to the Desire HD, it would be very portable to this device although the smaller storage would make it harder.
Small storage is not a problem, on N1 the DHD port was working great thanks to EXT3 of 1gb on SD